264 ANARCHIA
Muscovy received the largest single prize which permitted her transformation
into the great Russian Empire. For this, Jerzy Lubomirski, tribune of the Polish
nobility, was no less responsible than Bogdan Chmielnicki, the rebel Ataman of
the Dnieper Cossacks.^17
The Liberum Veto came into flower rather later than the Confederations,
though it too was grown from very ancient roots. It was a device whereby any
single member could halt the proceedings of the Sejm by the simple expression
of dissent. Such was the strength of feeling about the need for unanimity, that it
was considered quite improper to continue when a single voice was raised with
the words Veto (I deny), or Nie pozwalam (I do not allow it). Usually, of course,
an interruption of this sort produced nothing more than a temporary delay.
Exchanges between the Marshal of the Sejm and would-be objectors were fairly
common:
Shouts from the benches: Nie ma zgody. (There is no agreement)
Marshal: Z jakiej racjej? (For what reason?)
A single voice: Nie pozwalam...
At this point, the Marshal would call a break in the debate, and inquire more
closely as to what the objections were. If a simple misunderstanding was
involved, or a call for clarification, the debate would resume quite quickly. If
something more serious had arisen, the break might last for several hours or
even days, with the Marshal working hard in the corridors to repair the conflict.
If the objection occurred during the Second Phase of Sejm, when constitutions
were being passed, the particular bill at issue would be dropped, notwithstand-
ing a majority vote in its favour.
After several such difficulties in the early decades of the Republic, including
one in 1580 which blocked all taxation for that year, the matter did not really
come to a head till the Sejm of 1652. It was the fourth year of Chmielnicki's
Rebellion in the Ukraine, with all its attendant horrors. After six weeks in
session, the agenda was still full of unfinished business, and the Marshal rose to
announce a prolongation. The members were tired, uneasy at the increased
taxes which had just been voted, and ready to go home. It was a Saturday after-
noon. A single voice was clearly heard: 'Nie pozwalam.' The Marshal called a
break, and the chamber emptied. At first, no one seemed to know for certain
who had invoked the veto, or what the objection was. On the Sunday, many
members started to leave for home, believing the Sejm was complete except for
the closing ceremonies. By the Monday, the Marshal learned that a formal state-
ment of veto had been registered with the Crown Secretariat by one Jan Sicinski,
envoy of Upita in Lithuania. It was an impasse which no one had foreseen.
Sicinski had apparently gone straight from the Chamber to the secretariat, and
had taken horse to the east without a word to a soul. Lengthy consultations with
lawyers and colleagues gave the Marshal no solution. He had to admit that
Sicinski's veto was legal and valid. He could not recall the Sejm, as there were
not enough members left in Warsaw to form a quorum. The constitutions could